Giving
by Helene2Troie
Summary: Continuation of Lies. None of them wanted any trouble. They weren't big heroes like Sam, Edilio, and the others. They never asked for any of this.  Tensions. Lack of water. Grudges not easily forgotten. And to say the word 'child' used to mean something.
1. Fishbones and Rum Bottles

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~GIVING~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~ A Gone FanFiction by Helene2Troie ~~~~

(!) The original storyline, setting, and characters belong to Michael Grant. (!)

* * *

If the adults who used to live at Perdido Beach could see into the constricting bubble now surrounding the FAYZ, they would be met with a setting worthy of a post-apocalyptic movie.

Ever since that memorable night when Zil and the Human Crew had decided to spread chaos, a whole block of houses were nothing but charred remains. Some houses had been destroyed, in an effort to stop the fire. Farther away, the church, thanks to a battle of epic proportions between Sam, the official hero of Perdido Beach, and his brother Caine, was but a shadow of its old self.

Even the buildings that were still standing were a sorry sight. The streets were lined with trash and rubble, and the facades of houses and shops were covered in graffiti, sprayed in vivid colors, their offensive messages insulting any mutant who caught sight of them.

The worst, though, were the people. The children. Thanks to the effort of Albert, Hunter, the fishing and vegetable-harvesting crew, famine had been avoided. Just barely. It was obvious the young population of Perdido Beach wasn't eating full meals. Their cheeks were caved in, their arms sticks, their skins an unhealthy pale. And their eyes... Well, their eyes were haunted.

In what was now eight months, the children had lived through countless battles. They'd seen the rise and fall of numerous factions. They'd hear too many different speeches and promises. They'd been to too many funerals in so short a period.

They were already tired, tired beyond measure. And yet there were so many trials they still had to face. Water was beginning to lack. Petrol was already almost gone. And the vegetable supply could only last for so long. The fields were emptying at a frightening rate.

Not to mention strange, strange things were beginning to happen again...

* * *

Angie was trying her best to organize their house. Which was weird, because, before the FAYZ, she'd been the type to always put off cleaning her own room, let alone anything else. Her mother was always after her because of that, actually. Well, now, if somehow she was watching, Angie's mother would be proud.

At least Angie hoped so. Cleaning was no use if she was the only one pleased. And, sadly, out of their household of five, she was the only one concerned with keeping the mess at a minimum.

First, there was Kate. Kate was quite the businesswoman, and definitely too busy to keep up with something as mundane as housework. She had a stand at that mini-mall place, where she sold beauty products and proposed makeovers and haircuts. While Kate's first tries with scissors had been awful, she'd become quite adept at cutting people's hair, inspiring herself with leftover fashion magazines. Her little business was growing fast, and Kate's earnings represented the majority of the household's fund. Because of that, she was exempt from most of the chores. Well, that was fine in Angie's mind.

Now Tom also had an excuse. He was ten, and was still dealing with some of his personal demons. After the Human Crew's rampage last month, a whole block of houses had been burned to the ground. Meaning the surviving inhabitants of these houses were distributed, and Angie's household had inherited Tom. He usually kept to himself and caused no trouble, doodling on the walls of his room with crayons and magic markers. He rarely dared speak to either Angie or Kate, because they were girls, old, big ones at that, but sometimes would spend time with Lance and Shawn.

Ha! Lance and Shawn. Now these guys Angie couldn't stand. They just spent their days doing nothing, and refused to help with whatsoever. Shawn was okay enough in his good days. He tended to smile a lot and tell funny stories. But then there were the bad days, when Angie would find him knocked out on the couch, usually holding a bottle of booze. And Lance... well, don't get her started on Lance, or she would rant for hours. He was lazy. He thought he was God's gift to women. And he would disappear for hours, going 'out'. They all knew 'out' meant to his Human Crew meetings, or whatever they called themselves now that Zil was gone. They suspected him to have stepped up as the new leader. But no one said anything. At least, with the Human Crew's boss under their roof, they had nothing to fear from them.

Angie was sweeping the kitchen, regretting the electricity and thus the vacuum cleaners. She rolled her eyes when she saw someone (obviously Shawn. He always said he didn't, but you could be sure it was him), had thrown their fish bones on the floor, and had then proceeded to walking on them, thus spreading the gooey fish remains. She would have to actually bend down, get a sponge, and scoop it up manually. She hated that so much.

She sighed in annoyance, and, only distantly aware of it, noticed that her palms were sweaty.

* * *

"We have problems. Big problems.", began Albert.

The council nodded as one man. Its members, Albert, Howard, John, Dekka, Sam, Edilio, and its new addition, Quinn, were all only too-aware of the challenges now facing their community.

"We only have one field of veggie left, which will last us about two weeks, three tops. How's the fish, Quinn?", asked Albert. Ever since Astrid's departure from the Council, he had began to impose himself as the leader in all of their discussions.

"No problem there. We're catching loads of it. Doesn't look like it's running out anytime soon.", answered the head of the fishermen.

"Great. We'll always have fish, at the very least. Oh the delights of tuna."

That last phrase was from Howard, who couldn't keep himself from making sarcastic, often caustic remarks.

"Water's getting to be a problem. There's still some in the reservoir, we've been good at rationing it, but the problem lies with the trucks. We're really low on oil.", said Edilio.

"Yeah. It's kind of a bummer to have the water, but not being able to bring it back to us."

"If worse comes to worse, we'll ask some kids to take wheelbarrows and get the water that way.", proposed Edilio.

"Hmm... Could be a new job. What should we pay them, ten 'Bertos a week?", proposed Albert.

"What! Hey! That's what we get! If you're going to pay someone ten 'Bertos just to roll some water down, you're gonna have to boost the fisherman's salaries!", protested Quinn.

"Oh, puh-lease. What do you fishermen do? You get the best food, and have fun, all day on the sea, like. I don't get why you should be paid more.", said Howard.

"Like you're one to talk? What do you do?"

"Come on, people, let's calm down..."

" What do I do? I'm an adviser here, mister. I'm also an agent to our most powerful.. uh, 'xcept Sam here present, of course, mutant, and _dare I remind you_ who, or what, me and Orc are responsible for?"

"So you watch over a closed door. How heroic."

"Look here, Fish Boy, you're a newbie here, so don't try to..."

The spat between Howard and Quinn continued, both gradually raising their voices. Dekka, her chin in her hand, sighed. This wasn't getting anything done.

* * *

"Hey people, I'm home.", called Kate.

She was met with a couple groans. One from the sofa: that could only be Shawn, already sucking on his bottle. One from upstairs: creepy little Tom in his room, still drawing on his walls. And one from the kitchen: Angie, who had suddenly turned obsessive compulsive, and had taken it into her head to clean the house. Kate rolled her eyes. What a perfect little family.

She walked by the mirror in the living room, and groaned when she caught sight of her reflection. Before the FAYZ, she'd used to be beautiful. She'd wake up at five every morning to make herself that way, to do her hair, pick her outfit, and put on some makeup. She'd dated countless guys, and could have dated countless others. She was proud of her looks, of her knowledge in all things related to beauty. Now, her reflection sneered at her, as she would have sneered at any ugly girl in her old life. She was beyond thin, she looked anorexic. Once upon a time, that had been exactly what she wanted. Now she realized her shapes were gone, her eyes caved in, and no amount of foundation could hide the hollow of her cheeks.

"What's for dinner, honey?", she called out jokingly.

Angie came out of the kitchen, looking disgusted, mindlessly wiping her hands on her jeans.

"Hey Kate. I dunno what's for dinner. Haven't had time to hit the mall today."

"But you've been here all day. I thought you didn't have to work for the veggie crew anymore."

"Yeah."

"So... why didn't you get food?"

Angie bit her lips, a nervous tick she'd always had. It made her already thin lips look like a single line.

"Be-cause, I've been trying to get this place to look decent."

Kate looked around the living room. Glass bottles laying on the floor, dust over the lamp shades, pillows all over the place, feathers lying on the dirty carpet.

"And you've been doing _such_ a good job."

"Hey, I just did the kitchen.", said Angie, now sounding defensive.

"So in a whooole day...", began Kate.

"Look, why do I have to do everything around here? Why can't the guys do something for once?"

"You? Doing everything? Don't make me laugh. Who spends all day slaving at the mall, working from morning to nightfall to have some 'Bertos to buy some food which _apparently_, we didn't even buy!"

"Hey girls, keep it down, will you? Trying to sleep over here...", moaned Shawn from the couch.

Both Kate and Angie spun to face him, almost growling.

"You little drunk piece of crap! What do you do all day, uh?", said Angie.

Shawn was now painfully getting up, still holding a bottle in his right hand, stuffing a pillow under his armpit.

"Look, if it's to be abused, I'm not sticking around..."

"Abused? You haven't seen abused yet, you moron! I know you left that fish bone on the ground! And you know I hate picking it up!", yelled Angie.

"Whoa... what?"

"Yeah! That thing he does! It's annoying! Why can't any of you at least try to keep this place clean?"

"Angie. Are you mad at me for some fish bones? Girl, you have issues."

Angie was about to scream something nasty and potentially rated R, when the front door opened, letting in none other than his Highness Lance.

"What's going on?", he asked, handsome features twisted in a stupid expression.

"Angie's losing it. Again."

Now that came from Kate. Angie looked hurt. She had expected an attack from Shawn, but this felt like a back stab. She glared at her traitorous roommate. The emotion was making her hands even more sweaty. Embarrassed, she wiped them on the sides of her jeans.

"I'm off to my room. Find another sucker to cook for you tonight.", she spat.

She almost ran upstairs, speed walked across the corridor, where, through a half-opened door, she saw Tom was already asleep, and locked herself in her room.

It had previously been the master bedroom, but Angie had inherited it because Kate wanted the other room instead, as it had a TV. Now that the electricity was gone, Kate wanted to switch. Fat chance, thought Angie.

She dug through the wardrobe (note to self: clean it. Clothes all over the place, what a mess), and extracted a pair of PJs. Making sure the door was well locked, she began to undress. As she took off her jeans, she was surprised by the wet, sluggish feel to them. She let go of her pants in surprise. It was already too dark to really see properly, but she could distinguish the shape of her jeans against the pale carpeted floor. Timidly, she reached out. The front was fine. Relief. She had been pretty sure it wasn't _that_ time of the month yet. The legs were dry... But the sides... the sides were soaking wet. Angie made the link, and saw herself wiping her hands on the side of her thighs. Eww. That was nasty. They really needed electricity back, and get some AC back in this place.

Angie collapsed into her queen sized bed. Great. The last thing she needed was some weird sweating issues.

* * *

One thing you needed to know about Shawn Wood was that he was filled with good intentions. He wanted to be helpful. Most of the time anyway. But not if it meant any work on his part.

Back in the adults-were-still-here days, Shawn had been the secretary of the Just Say No league at his junior high. He'd even organized a stupid play about the dangers of alcohol. If anyone back then had offered him a beer, Shawn would have probably lectured him. He was much more engaged, involved back then.

When the FAYZ started, Shawn quickly found himself overwhelmed by the events. He had let Sam and the others take charge, glad for once to follow someone else's orders. It made him above reproach. Who could blame him for simply doing what he was told?

Lance and him had been friends in school. He offered him to move in. In exchange, Lance had introduced him to the Human Crew, HC for the initiated. Shawn didn't do too much. Some idiotic graffiti. 'NO FREAKS', or something stupid like that. Just to fit in really. He didn't see the harm in it.

And then Zil got some other ideas, that included burning houses and whatnot. Shawn, to his greatest shame, had followed at first. It had seemed exciting. But as soon as the gunfire started, he had peed his pants and ran off, hiding behind their house. He'd never told anyone. After Zil's death, the HC had become a joke. Shawn attended the meetings once in a while, just to make Lance happy.

But mostly, Shawn tried to forget. And alcohol was good for that.

So he sometimes stole a few 'Bertos from the family fund to go buy himself something on the black market. He knew Kate knew. He also knew Kate had such a crush on him that she'd never rat him out, let alone tell him to stop.

Gulping down the remaining liquid of an old rum bottle, he attempted to forget the memories of his anti-alcohol speeches, of the disastrous figures he'd so often tried to hammer into people's heads, of the diagrams of healthy lungs vs. a smoker's lungs. Alcohol was good for that. Forgetting.

* * *

Behind a locked door in Orc and Howard's house, there was something terrible. Howard himself, outspoken and sarcastic as he usually was, only reluctantly adventured near this door.

Sometimes, there were horrible screams, mostly threats. Howard told himself they were worthless, this prisoner was never going to escape, let alone make good on his sinister promises of pain. To no avail. Then sometimes, the prisoner, now with a girl's voice, would scream for Howard to kill her. This was, in a way, much worse.

Thankfully for Howard, this last type of scream was gradually giving way to the first. It was only seldom now that the girl prisoner came out. The darker side was slowly beginning to gain more power.


	2. Dance and Panic

The Council had had a meeting this morning.

As all Council meetings, it had not gone smoothly.

First, there was the subject of food, which, obviously, was rather touchy. Conserving the leftover vegetables meant not being able to eat them. Replanting new ones meant the leftovers had to be sacrificed for the seeds, and some water needed to be spared to water the crops.

Then there were the tensions. There was an underlying thought, never voiced, but still present. They were on the Council. That made them special. Why should they have to eat less and drink less just so little freaks like the Human Crew guys could get something? _They_ never worked. _They _never did anything.

The fighting had reached a climax when John raised his voice.

« It'll be the eight month anniversary of the FAYZ tomorrow. We should have a party. »

They all became silent. The event of John speaking up was rare enough, and now the kid was spouting some party nonsense as the rest of them tried to decide how much the rations should be cut. Howard gave an audible snort.

« Actually, that's not such a bad idea. », declared Albert.

They all stared at him, trying to follow his reasoning.

« Look. Everybody's kinda on edge right now. People know veggies are almost gone, and so's the water. It would be good to come as one, unite the people of Perdido Beach and have some sort of celebration. Remember Thanksgiving? We should do something like that again, I've been thinking about it for a while. »

« Right. How? », challenged Dekka.

« Yeah, we'd need food, music, lights. All of which we don't have. », summed up Edilio.

« Well... as for food, we could tell people to bring their own. », proposed Albert.

« Music... You know these kids playing at the mall? Could ask them. »

« They're awful! »

« Hey, they can kinda play, so, as long as they get a steady sound, a good beat, there could be dancing... »

« They're still awful. »

« We could get that girl... wassshername... Jill or som'thing... »

« Yeah. Her. Definitely. »

"No, no, no. Whenever she sings, people just freeze. Forget Jill, let's get those mall kids."

« As for lights, I can manage. », said Sam.

« Well, well, well. Looks like we're gonna have ourselves a party after all. », dryly voiced Howard, echoing the surprised thoughts of everyone around the Council table.

* * *

Kate heard about the party through her hairdressing business. There was not a piece of gossip that could escape a beautician.

She had been very excited, of course. Finally, something interesting was taking place in Perdido Beach. Well, as in _positive_ interesting. She didn't think turning the city into a battlefront, as had been the case countless times in those eight months, really counted as interesting. She wondered if people would be bringing dates, before scolding herself inwardly.

_Of course_ people would be bringing dates. This was a dance, no?

Before making her way home that night, she had a last look at herself in the big mirror she used for her business. Frowning, she reapplied some eyeliner and lipgloss, pouting at her reflection, trying to gather her courage. She could do this. Wasn't she Kate Gorne? Come on. She'd broken countless hearts before, one small question wouldn't kill her. She took a deep breath, composed herself, and flashed her teeth to the mirror one last time before heading home.

« Honey, I'm home! », she called, as always, as she passed the doorway.

She saw Angie and Shawn, squabbling, as usual, Angie pointing at the glass bottles laying on the livingroom cream carpet. Lance was watching the scene, looking amused. Tom was sitting next to him, his face blank. They all grunted a greeting as she came in.

« Hey Kate. », managed Shawn, probably glad to have an excuse to escape Angie's wrath.

« Heeey. », answered Kate, as all her nervousness flooded her once again. He was cute. Very cute. She couldn't blow this.

« Kate, how was your day? », asked Angie.

« Greeeat. Awesome. And you'll never guess. Learned an interesting piece of gossip. Apparently, there's going to be some form of dance, you know. To celebrate the eight month anniversary. Whoo hoo. »

« A dance? How? Where? »

« Before the church. How, I got no clue. Maybe they've got food stashed somewhere. That'd be nice. »

Lance stood up, straightening some crease in his jeans.

« Well. About time something cool happened in this crap-hole. »

Kate chuckled. She'd read somewhere that guys liked girls who laughed a lot. Who cared if what they said wasn't even funny?

Lance was walking towards her, and he had a strange look on his face as he passed his hand through his hair. He smiled disarmingly as he said:

« Look, I sure am not showing up alone. Kate, wanna be my date? »

Kate stood there, her mouth almost open. This was not supposed to happen. She wanted Shawn, not Lance! Well, it wasn't that he was ugly or anything. He was pretty hot in his own way. It was just that... Well... He didn't have Shawn's easy laugh, or Shawn's infectious smile. In short, he wasn't the one she wanted.

Then again... jealousy. Could kinda work. Plus, she couldn't really say no, could she? That guy could be the psycho leader of the HC for all she knew.

« Wow, yeah, sure, I'd love to. », she breathed out.

Lance grinned.

« Super. Wear something sexy and I'll wear a tie. »

« Sounds good. »

Angie had watched the scene with a frown, shaking her head. Kate gave her a little « yeah, I know » smile.

Shawn had looked slightly panicked.

« Whoa... wait. Is this a bring-a-date thing? »

« No, but everyone's bringing one anyway. Duh. », answered Lance.

« Well, who am I gonna ask? »

Kate bit her lips. _Ask meeee!,_ yelled her thoughts. _Who cares about Lance!_

Shawn's eyes met Angie's. He raised his eyebrow, as if evaluating the pros and cons of this possible choice. Angie's heart beat faster, and, in a flash of horror, she realized her palms were becoming sweaty. She clasped her hands being her back.

Then, unexpectedly, Tom stood up, blushing furiously.

« Angie, willyoubemydate? »

Time seemed to stop for a second. Lance began to laugh, joined by an awkward Shawn who tried to act as if he hadn't just been considering asking the same exact question.

« So little Tom's into older women. Cute. », said Kate, relieved Tom had asked before Shawn got the chance. Going with Lance was already painful enough, she didn't need to see her best friend going with her crush.

« Uh. Sure. Yeah. Why not? », answered Angie reluctantly.

Although tall for his age, Tom was still a head shorter than her. She wondered what they would look like together, dancing at the party, and felt ridiculous for saying yes. Her hands felt even sweatier.

She'd said yes. Now she would have to go outside, in plain view. Great. Now there was no going back.

* * *

Howard and Orc were having a fight.

Now, usually, that was something Howard tried to avoid doing. When it came to brute force, no one could best Orc. But...

« No way am I staying here. I watched over that thing yesterday night. », argued Howard.

« I watched over it this morning. », came out Orc's guttural voice.

« Whatever, man, I'm a member of the Council, what the hell is it going to look like if I don't go to a party organized by us? »

« I never get to go to parties. »

That would have sounded awfully close to whining if Orc hadn't been a two-hundred pound monstrosity.

« This is the first! Of course you haven't been to a party yet! », yelled Howard.

« I wanna go. »

« Tough luck, man, one of us has to stay here to watch- »

« Who says? »

« Sammy boy. »

« Who cares what he says? »

« Uh... »

That was when Howard's tactical sense kicked in. On one side: Sammy boy, with deadly laser rays shooting out of his hands. On the other: Orc, a huge, boulder-like, unbeatable mutant. Oh, and his friend, kind of. Then again... what were the odds Sam would ever find out? Come on. They had been watching over this closed door for weeks now, and nothing ever happened. The thing wasn't going anywhere, tied up as it was. And why should _they_ sacrifice themselves, uh? Why should _they_ be stuck with everyone's dirty job?

« You know what, Orc? You're right. Let's just both leave for the party. Sam can stick the monster watch up his- »

* * *

The party was in full swing. The kids of Perdido Beach, after a few awkward moments, had finally made their way to the dance floor. The musicians were none other than 'the kids playing at the mall', but they had upped their game for the party, and seemed less awful than usual. With great goodwill, it was almost possible to imagine one could dance to the beat of the song.

John had been right to suggest throwing a party. As far as celebrations went, this one was pretty worthless. Nothing to eat or drink, unless you brought some of your own supplies. Music was awful, and not loud enough. But for once, everyone was making an effort. It felt nice to do something out of the ordinary that didn't involve murdering one's neighbor. Well, the fact that the small population of the FAYZ came together for a night didn't mean the end of tensions, though. Apparently unconsciously, the kids had seperated themselves, freaks on one side, normals on the other. Edilio already had had to break a couple fights, and it was suspected that someone was going around proposing drugs and alcohol. Still. This, at least, was a beginning.

Kate, wearing something red and sexy, was dancing with Lance, wearing a shirt and a tie, looking nervous. She had just caught sight of some mutants walking through the 'normals side'. That girl, the Breeze or whatever she was calling herself, holding the arm of that freakish nerd, not to mention traitor, Jack. She narrowed her eyes, and hoped Lance hadn't seen them. She definitely didn't want her date to embarrassingly pick a fight when things were going so well.

Angie was actually laughing, and having a good time with Tom, who, it turned out, wasn't as shy as he first appeared. Still, though, she secretly hoped the kid had only asked her because he didn't want to go alone. It would be weird if he actually had feelings for her or something...

Her attention, however, was not focused entirely on Tom. She kept nervously scanning the crowd, looking for someone, her heart beating faster everytime someone fitting that description walked past them. But, no, the person didn't seem to be here. Thank God. Of course, Angie had told Kate that since the veggies were almost gone, they had dismissed some of the veggie crew members. Which, well, was kind of true. Just not when it came to Angie. She hadn't been dismissed. She'd quit.  
There was a reason as to why she stuck to the house nowadays. She was too damn scared to go outside alone.

Shawn was in the sidelines, sometimes joining Kate and Lance, sometimes Angie and Tom, feeling stupid for being alone. He tried to keep towards the shadowy, hidden places around the church, hoping to meet someone who would have had the bright idea to start selling beer.

And then, the music stopped. Everyone started booing at once, offended to be stopped while they were, for once, having fun.

A blond girl everyone recognized to be Astrid walked towards what had to be the center of the crowd, and Dekka, using her mutant power, made her hover slightly above everyone else. A cry of « awww, why aren't ya wearing a skirt, sweetie? » went up from a random boy. Whoever the random boy was, he immediately sobered up as Sam began glaring at the crowd.

« _Hey everyone! I hope you're enjoying the party! If you don't mind, I'll just take a few moments of your time! As all of you know, it has been eight months. Eight months since the walls went up, eight months since the adults disappeared. »_

Kate groaned. A speech.

« Come on, Lance, let's go. If they're starting speeches, they're never gonna go on for years. », she whispered.

« Wait... », said Lance.

Angie, Tom, and Shawn were making their way towards them. Kate smirked when she saw Angie was pulling Tom by the hand.

« Yo, Lance. », grunted Shawn.

« Yo Shawn. What's shaking, man? »

« Dunno. Girl's making a speech. »

« So where were you? You just kinda vanished in the crowd, and- »

« Shhh! We can hear you! », complained Tom.

The boys were about to snap at him, but noticed Kate and Angie were also concentrating on Astrid's words. With a shared look and a sigh, they imitated them.

_« - tragedy, but we always managed to pull through. Just last month, the little kids almost all died. If it wasn't for Dekka and Brianna.. . »_

« The Breeze! It's the Breeze! », rang a girl's voice, accompanied by some chuckling.

_« ... and the Breeze, well... We would have lost all of them. A little before that, a whole block of Perdido Beach was burned down by Zil and his minions, the so called Human Crew... »_

Lance seemed to hiss under his breath. His roommates flashed him a tense look.

Tom, however, was not so much worried about Lance as the boy standing next to him.

His name was Brian, and he was sporting a mass of brown hair that almost hid his green eyes. Eyes, which, at the moment, looked to be shooting Astrid down with sheer fury. Tom knew the kid well, and the child's expression scared him. Brian tended to be passionate, acting before thinking, and his anger was destructive as well as long-lasting. And at the moment, his fists shaking at his side, Brian looked like he was about to do something very foolish.

And even though Tom had been the one, seconds ago, to quiet down Lance and Shawn, he was the one who said:

« Hey, Brian, you okay? »

The boy turned to face Tom, and his thin lips parted in a half-smile.

« Wow, Tom, long time no see. Funny to think we used to live in the same house. Before, you know, t'was burned down by those assholes. »

« Yeah... How you've been doing? »

Brian, however, completely ignored Tom's question, apparently eager to get something off his chest.

« Look at her. It's disgusting. It's so easy to blame everything on the HC. She was the head of the Council at the time, and she didn't even lift a finger to stop them. All she did was spread lies about that girl Orsay. She's the one who crushed Mary in front of everyone too. I'm sure that's why she went crazy and went over the cliff. And now everyone's acting as if she's a big hero or something. »

« Hmm. Yeah... I guess you're right. », said Tom uncertainly.

« You don't care, do you? You've got some new, older friends now, you don't care about me. I don't even know why I told you that stuff. »

« What? No... »

« Whatever, Tom. See you around. »

On that, Brian turned heels and stalked away. Tom was slightly upset to see him leave, the encounter making him realize how long it had been since he'd last seen his previous friends. He mentally promised himself to go see Brian tomorrow, and patch things up. Meanwhile, Astrid was still talking.

_« We need to unite. Only together we can survive. So far, we've owed a limited few for saving the butts of the many. That can't go on. Tonight, we have come together, we've danced, laughed, partied together. Let tonight be the beginning of a new time. A time of togetherness! »_

« Togetherness, eh, Kate? », whispered Lance, wagging his eyebrows suggestively.

« Ugh. Corny speech. », commented Kate in what she thought was a low voice, acting as if she hadn't heard his comment, trying to keep her face from betraying the disgust she felt towards her date.

No matter how right she was though, she couldn't help but be moved by Astrid's harangue. There was something about these simple, yet inspiring words, that...

Just like everyone, Kate began to clap as soon as Astrid was finished.

Angie, equally impressed, applauded.

And then.

The most immediate cause of Angie's clap was a powerful gush of water, which knocked down Shawn, Tom, and three other people standing in front of her.

Angie, aghast, stared in horror at her hands. By then, the flow was less violent, but water was still pouring out of her hands, gurgling like a small spring.

Kate, turning her head at the screams of Angie's unfortunate victims, opened her mouth fully, and remained that way, barely aware of the scream coming out of her glossy lips, gripping Lance's arm so hard, it would leave bruises.

Somebody in the crowd yelled: « Freak! Freaks are attacking! », and a toddler began to howl.

Angie herself was weeping, her tears, it seemed, increasing the amount of water pouring out of her.

« Gah! Stop it! Stop it stop it! Somebody heeeelp! »

A few important-looking people, including Sam, were making their way towards her. Astrid, part of this group, was looking at Angie strangely, as if evaluating her.

« Everybody remain calm! », ordered Edilio, « The situation is under control! »

Albert, closely behind Sam, felt his eyes were bulging out of their sockets. For countless sessions, the Council had tried to resolve the water issue. Water had become something rare, something precious. No one bathed anymore. Hell, people had become careful not to spill a drop of their drinking rations. The forming puddle on the ground had something obscene about it...

« Someone get bottles! Hurry up, what are you laggers doing standing around for! One Bertos per helper, we need to get this water stored up! », shouted Albert, always the opportunist.

Angie was blubbering, somehow ashamed of the liquid flooding down her palms, as if she'd been caught peeing her pants.

« Help help help. », she pleaded.

« Don't worry, everything's gonna be okay. Just try to concentrate. Can you aim or something? People are going to be bringing bottles, you're gonna have to- », instructed Albert.

« Does it hurt? Are you all right? »

« Yeah, new mutant! Hi, I'm Breeze. Try not to cry, what's happening to you is actually really cool. »

« Can you please, ya know, stop weeping? It's making everyone nervous. »

« What's your name? I think I remember you from the Veggie Crew, but... »

« Is this the first time you've done it? Has anything strange ever happened before? »

« My God, Angie, what the hell. How are you a freaking mutant..! »

« Look, you're gonna have to report to the Council tomorrow, then we can discuss what- »

Angie, overwhelmed by all these voices, all this clustering, noisy mass of people, looked like she was about to swoon. Her gaze was somehow attracted to a quiet member of the group surrounding her, a short, smug-looking boy.

« Welcome to the world of politics. I hope you've enjoyed your life until now. », said Howard, his face spread in a smile that bode no good.


	3. Agents and Revenge

Angie was very uncomfortable.

She was still wearing her party dress, which was drenched in water. She hoped someone would get her a towel or something. Well, she wished she had the guts to ask.

« For how long have you had this power? Look, you should have told us right away, hiding an ability only makes it worse... », was lecturing an imposing dark girl.

Angie felt close to tears. Back in pre-FAYZ days, she hated presenting projects in front of her class. The present situation was bringing her back to room 124, where, under the stares of 23 students, she declaimed the wrong poem, which the teacher only mentioned once she was done. Her cheeks still burned as she remembered this particularly embarrassing episode.

« I. didn't. Know. I found out just now. », she muttered.

She was trying her best to keep calm, but the combined stares of Perdido Beach's elite was not something she was used to. There they all were, shamelessly studying her. She felt like an animal in a zoo.

« So how exactly does it work? How do you make water appear? », inquired Sam.

« I dunno. I just clapped, and... »

« Did you feel anything? Powers are usually linked with emotions... », continued Sam, who spoke from experience. He himself remembered the hovering ball of light he had once created to shield him from the terror darkness brought.

« I... »

Angie was reminded of the party. Half of her was laughing with Tom. And half of her was looking for _him_...

And previously, when her hands felt sweaty (of course, she now knew that was her power trying to manifest itself. It was a relief, at least, to know she wasn't a sweaty freak of nature. Just a plain freak of nature.), after finding those stupid fish bones Shawn always left behind... After that fight with Kate and Shawn...

« Fear. And anger. », she answered.

« Yep, that's pretty much it. You'll come to a point where you'll be able to use your ability without forcing yourself to feel anything, though. »

She blushed. Sam. The Sam was talking to her, giving her advice and everything! This couldn't be happening... She was in this room, with all these important people... These guys had fought with Caine and Drake, measured themselves against the Darkness, brought a struggling Perdido Beach back to its feet. She felt worthless when she compared herself to them. What had she done?

She had hidden in her room and cried while the battles were raging. She had given herself a good conscience by working for the veggie crew, but she wasn't doing it just to help, she was doing it for the Bertos. Up to then, she had an excuse: she was powerless. Hmm. Not anymore.  
No, who was she, kidding, she still was. There was a difference between having no Power and being powerless.

« Look, Annie. That's your name, right? », started Albert.

« Umm... », she began, gathering her courage.

« It's Angie. An- geee. », unexpectedly said Howard before she'd had the chance to correct Albert.

« Okay, hmm, Angie », continued Albert, « Look. I think you know there's been water problems lately. We're trying to save it, but if we're going to be realistic, the supply we have won't last forever. I guess that's where you come in. If you can make as much water as last night everyday, it would actually solve a lot of problems. »

« Albert, there's about three hundred of us. One liter per person and per day, at least. She'll have to stand there and drip all day long to have enough for everyone. », interjected Dekka.

Angie felt herself blush at the word 'drip'. Something about it made her feel the need to scrub herself thoroughly. Dekka didn't seem to notice her anxiety, plunged as she was in calculations and planning. This Angie girl had seemed like a blessing at first. They needed water, and BAM, this girl suddenly gets the Ability to pour water out of her hands. It was almost too good to be true.  
And, Dekka thought darkly, as always with such things, it _was_ too good to be true. There was no way Angie could produce enough water for everyone. She had just given everyone the hope she would, only to... supply Perdido Beach with another reason for disappointment.

« Look, she just got her powers. She needs training. Then she'll be able to produce more water. You'll train Angie, right? », asked Edilio.

« Hmm... yeah... sure... »

« Look, we're going to need you to come here everyday. A lot of people saw you at the party, and we want to be able to know you're safe and in good hands. », declared Sam.

Angie thought about the terrible implications of these two sentences. First of all, she was now a Mutant. Which was, when you lived with the leader of the HC, possibly one of the worst things that could happen to you. _What would Lance's reaction be? Would he kick her out? He couldn't, could he? She and Kate had lived there before he moved in, he surely had no right to... Oh no. Kate. She wouldn't be taking it well. And then... this whole protection thing_. She hated seeing guns. The one Edilio was holding was enough to make her nervous. She didn't particularly want to be encircled by Edilio's soldiers all day... _Oh, and let's not forget the ominous tone Sam had used for 'in good hands.' Of course the council knew about Lance. What were they going to do? Keep her here, away from him? Why? She was sure Lance wouldn't appreciate her new mutant state... Or would he? The HC had accepted Lana. She had a use, she was the Healer_. Did Angie have an use now?

_Ugh, obviously. That was the only reason they were talking to her._

Politics.

She looked up and shared a look with Howard, who, strangely, seemed to know what she was thinking.

« I'm not sure... », she began meekly.

The Council was ignoring her, and already making plans to have a few guards assigned to her protection, and debates were made as to where these guards could be taken from. Thus followed a discussion concerning the situation of the armed forces of Perdido Beach, and another discussion as to why they needed protection anyway, since Caine was apparently gone for good.

« Look... I don't want... », she tried again, with as much success.

« People, let's have a five-minute break. », voiced Howard, yelling above the voices of the Council members.

« Okay, everyone take five. », agreed Sam. He usually wouldn't have so readily listened to Howard, but frankly, he was feeling tired, and he interiorly agreed with Howard on the need for a pause.

They all filed out into the corridor, as if they were still in school, as if they were enjoying the small time alloted between when classes ended and started. Old habits die hard.

Angie was feeling lost and alone. Clearly, her presence wasn't needed, they were already making all the decisions for her. She seemed out of place amongst the celebrities of Perdido Beach.

Howard, smugly smiling, made his way towards her.

« You're letting yourself be trampled. And this is only the beginning, sucker. »

« I'm not... »

« Uh uh. So you want guys to be following you around.. For your protection, of course. I hope you weren't intimate with your roomies, 'cause you're not seeing them again. Too many links to the HC. You're precious cargo now, they don't want you falling into the wrong hands. »

« I'm not cargo! I'm a person! »

« Well, I think so. The rest of them? Not so sure. »

Angie simply stood there, not daring to contradict him. His words sounded too horribly true anyway.

« They think they're doing everything for the Greater Good though, so that makes it all okay. Until then, I hope you don't mind sitting all day in a dark room, filling bottle after bottle. »

« Why are you saying this? »

« Look, girlie, what you need is an agent. Someone who's got the guts to stick up for you. Who gets you a good deal. Deals that involve seeing your friends again and not dragging an escort everywhere you go. »

« Do you think that's possible? With my power... I don't know, maybe they're right... »

« What? Your power is the reason they're wrong! Can't you see? Water's lacking. It's becoming rarer and rarer, and in a few weeks, kids are going to start killing each other over it. And you, Angie, are basically a walking water cooler. You _own_ them. You _own_ Perdido Beach. »

Howard raised his eyebrows and smiled, content on his flawless argumentation, and its obvious effect on Angie. She now looked much more determined.

« You're right. Maybe I should take you as my agent. »

« Hmm hmm. But, girlie, don't forget my services don't come for free. I'm expecting payment. »

« What kind of payment? »

« We'll figure it out. Let's just say I'd like a reserve of liquid stuff in the basement of my house. Just in case, ya know. Can't be too cautious. »

« Well, I guess that's no problem for me now. »

« Exactly what I was thinking. So, deal? »

« Deal. »

Angie shook Howard's palm.

* * *

« Dude, wassup? »

A short, determined boy was making his way towards Tom.

« Oh, hey Brian. Look, about last night... »

« Hmm, yeah, that's what I was coming to see you about, Tom. Good thing you were in front of your house, I forgot where you lived exactly. »

« Well, here it is. _Mi casa_. », said Tom, accompanying his words with a forced chuckle, attempting to lighten the atmosphere. Brian had that effect on conversations. There was this fire, this barely contained anger in everything Brian said or did. He just... made people feel uncomfortable.

« Yeah, now I see. Sorry 'bout yelling at you last night. I was just pissed off because of that cow, Astrid. But, yeah, not pissed at you. »

« Uh... cool. »

« Yeah. »

« So... », said Tom, nervously kicking the dust, avoiding Brian's piercing green eyes.

« I also came here 'cause of your girlfriend. »

"Who?", asked Tom, before he mentally smacked himself and said:"Angie?"

« Yeah, whatever, the girl pissing water out of her hands. I got no more water, so I was thinking she could do some of her splashing and fill me a bottle or two.», said Tom, accompanying his words with a hand gesture that was supposed to represent water splashing.

« Uh... about that. She's... uh... gone. She's with the Council. »

Brian's face tensed as he became paler. The contrast of his white cheeks and dark eyebags was intensified.

« What! Astrid took her? »

« Not Astrid, the Council... », said Tom, who didn't fully understand how Brian had skipped from Angie to Astrid.

« Don't be a moron, Astrid is the Council, the Council is Astrid! She took that damn girl! I can't believe it! »

« They just came to get her this morning. This guy... wasshisname... uh, Edilio, yeah, he came and she went with him to the Council building. They didn't force her, Brian. »

« Of course they didn't! », agreed Brian in a sickly sweet voice.

The boy then proceeded to slap Tom's left forearm.

« You idiot! You think they'll let her come back? You think I'm the first kid to want water? Everybody's looking for her! Council wants her too! She wants the water for herself, that greedy cow! »

« Whoa, Brian, calm down, you're getting really excited... »

« Shut up! Astrid's got her, Astrid's got the water supply! Makes sense, she already destroyed everything else... You think she was a 'good' person, uh? Oh yeees, preeecious Astrid, she's so pwetty and nice, she can't do anything wrong... Wake up, already! She let the HC burn us down! As if she burned our house herself, Tom! She was part of the Council, and it didn't even occur to her to put a stop to the HC. Why? Because it didn't really matter to her. She knew she had Sammy-boy to protect her no matter what, so who cared about us little people? Oh, and you were there outside of the church that day, you heard it like me. Astrid spread that lie, she kept gossiping about Mary puking up food, as if anyone in their right mind would do that, none of us had food to puke in the first place... She sent Mary over the edge! Now who's minding the kids, uh? Some washed-out 'volunteers'? She's evil! She's evil! How come she always comes out on top, no matter what? She's with Sam only as long as it makes her more powerful, can't you see that! She's using everyone! And... Okay, tell this to anyone, and I'll punch your face in, but I'm pretty sure she started the FAYZ. She's got to be the one responsible for it. Think about it. Who profited most from the FAYZ, uh? Certainly not you and me, that's for sure. I got this feeling, ya know, that she's got this power. I know she did it, I just know it! She's evil! Evil! », spat Brian, who couldn't stop himself from talking, as if he was getting rid of venom. His green eyes were glinting dangerously during his rant, and there was something not altogether right with his features as he exposed his reasons for doubting Astrid.

« Brian! Holy crap! Cool it! », ordered Tom, grabbing his friend by the shoulders. Poor Tom was truly saddened by Brian's emotion, which shocked and horrified him. The boy was at a loss for words, not really knowing what arguments he could use to counter his friend's suspicions.

Brian shuddered, and stayed with his mouth open, as if he was about to vomit.

« Why do you hate her so much? Come on. If you want to hate someone, hate Drake! Caine! Zil! », said Tom, after a sudden bout of inspiration. Surely there were enough external problems to start looking for internal ones?

« Even before the FAYZ, I hated her. She was always there, with her retarded brother. And, this one time, I was in my front lawn, playing basketball with my dad's old ball. It's all I had left of him, ya know? He used to love basketball. We played before his accident. And there this... weirdo comes along, and I drop the ball. He grabs it, and he has this look on his face, ya know? Like he wants to blow it up or something. Really concentrated on it, like. Weird, I thought, the kid's usually out of it, but no, this time, he was staring at my ball, and he looked conscious all right. Then Astrid comes along, and get this, just as she comes up to him, the ball...explodes. »

« What? »

« Yeah, it exploded. And she knew! She knew it was all I had left of my dad! And she blew it up, 'cause her brother, that retard, was looking at it weird! I hate her! Hate her! », yelled Brian, stamping his feet like an angry child. The painful memory had woken up something inside of him, and his expression became more humane, more vulnerable as his eyes filled with tears. Emotion seemed to overcome him.

Tom came up to him and awkwardly patted his shoulder.

« You never told me this before. »

Brian swung around, his melancholy turning into anger as he wiped his tears with a violent brush of his forearm. The last thing Brian needed was Tom thinking he was weak, emotional.

« Ya, no kidding. Don't know why I did. I keep on telling you stuff, but you don't give a shit. Look, whatever, I'm outta here. Come and get me when your girlfriend comes back. If she ever does. »

On these words, Brian suddenly turned heels, leaving behind him a confused, and extremely worried Tom. The boy had a feeling Brian would do something rash and unadvised. Well, it was not a feeling, it was a certainty. The best thing to do, in Tom's opinion, was to stay out of the way. Rash and unadvised acts would still be committed. But, and this was the most important part, not on him.

* * *

Lance and Shawn were sitting on the carpeted floor, looking at Kate, who, cuddled in the armchair, was positively fuming.

« How dare they! Angie's ours, mutant or not, they got no right to butt in here and snatch her! Do you believe them? »

The boys, awkward, didn't answer. Kate sniffed angrily.

« Where's Tom anyway? »

« Outside. I saw he was talking to that little freak from last night. The creepy kid. », answered Lance.

« Look, you guys are no use. I'm going to the kitchen, 'get some stuff to eat. »

« 'Kay. Bring me back some fish, will you? »

« Get it yourself. »

Kate huffed and bustled off, leaving a silent room behind her, the scent of her cheap perfume trailing after her, her high heel shoes, much too high, clanking noisily against the floor. Shawn faced Lance.

« Kate's pretty angry about all this. »

« Yeah, no kidding. », agreed Lance absent-mindedly, brushing his fingers through his gorgeous hairdo. He'd have to ask Kate for a haircut, it was getting a little long..

« Look, I think she's overreacting. The Council's got some reasons to keep Angie. They might want to test her power, sort out some stuff with water supply. », said Shawn, trying to reassure himself more than Lance.

« Yeah, yeah. Of course. No worries, right? She'll be back by seven, as annoying as ever. », answered Lance, messing with strands of his hair.

« Heh. Right. But, uh, look. They might not want her to come back here 'cause of us. »

« What? Why? », said Lance, who stopped arranging his hair.

« You're HC, man, and so am I, I guess. They don't want us messing with her or something. »

Lance paused for a second, considering the situation, and snorted. He somehow managed to make it cool, a skill which Shawn envied him.

« She's Angie! It's not like she can blow holes into people, she squirts water! She's useful, we won't beat her up! »

Shawn smiled but something in his mind was screaming. What Lance had just said sounded so wrong, on so many levels. It was obvious that Angie wasn't Angie anymore, she was some... mutant.

« I think they're kinda worried. The HC used to be, ya know... more violent. »

« That was Zil. He was a little bastard, man. Times have changed, we're more peaceful now. We've made our apologies for the fire incidents, Zil's... gone, and we're straight, now. We listen to the Council 'cause they have normies in there sticking up for the non-freaks. We're good now! We have a few meetings once in a while, keeping people motivated, showing freaks we're not ready to back off just yet. You know, we're doing good.»

« Some kids are still afraid to look you in the eyes man. », muttered Shawn.

He didn't say Zil hadn't been the only one committing atrocities. He didn't say Lance had had his fair share of blood. He didn't dare say the only reason the HC was 'straight' nowadays was because they were too scared to actually do anything, having lost Zil's leadership. He didn't even say that, maybe it wasn't only the Council that didn't want Angie mixed up in HC business, it was a little bit of him too. Angie was aggravating sometimes, but she was his friend. Well, at least he certainly thought so. He even made sure to put fish bones on the ground, partly teasing her, and partly giving her something to clean. The thought of Angie, and the blood-thirsty HC ever meeting was a discomforting one.

« I guess. », said Lance, but he didn't sound thoughtful, he sounded rather proud.

Shawn hesitated before saying the next few words, yet he knew they had to be uttered. He had been thinking about it for a long time, even before the Angie incident. Now was perhaps the right time to bring it up.

« Lance. There's one simple solution. We could tell them the HC is done. »

« Whadda you mean, tell them? Should we lie or- », said Lance, confused about Shawn's intentions.

« No, we should tell the truth. The HC should be over. »

Lance paused. Not fully taking in the full extent of Shawn's words, he was messing with his fringe, until...

« Shawn, do you realize what you're saying-? »

« It's a joke, anyways! It's just meetings where everyone whines about how it's unfair they don't have powers yet! It's useless! Let's just end it. And forget it ever happened. Please. »

Lance got up, staring at Shawn as if he was seeing him for the first time.

« Please, Lance. It would solve a lot of problems. And they'd probably let Angie come back here if we say we're through with HC. Come on. If not Angie, think of the water. »

« I'll... think about it. »

« Come on, dude. »

« I'll tell you tomorrow, okay? »

« Okay. Thanks man. »

« Don't thank me. Haven't decided yet. »

* * *

Howard got home, a pleased smile plastered on his face.

« Okay, this girl's going to come and get us some water. Do we have any bottles anywhere? »

« Dunno. », said Orc.

« Here's an easier question then: where do you throw your old beer cans when you're done with them? »

« The ones I don't crush I put behind the sofa. »

« Thank you! Was that so hard! »

Howard made his way to the spot Orc had indicated and started sorting through various objects, sorting out bottles from pillow feathers, shards of glass, and what looked like moldy sheets of lined paper.

« So, anything new happen when I was with the Council? »

« We're running out of beer. »

« Yeah. I know that. I _said_, anything 'new'? »

« Meh. _The thing_ hasn't moved at all. Just stands there, puffing. And breathing loudly, like. »

« See, what did I tell you? We left last night, enjoyed ourselves at the party, and none got wiser. _The thing_ stayed where it is, and we had some fun. We should do this more often. »

« Both go, and leave _the thing_ without guard? »

« Hell yeah. What's the worst that can happen? »

Behind a locked door, Drake was wheezing piteously. He concentrated all his might on pushing _her_ back into his unconscious, back to a place where she wouldn't control him and his impulsions. So she prevented him from breaking his chains, kicking down the locked door, and spread some well-deserved revenge. Not for long. Not if Drake could do anything about it.

Soon, he would be free.


	4. Bathtubs and Shotguns

Brian had always been a strange kid. He had been deeply marked by his father's death, and was known in school for his antisocial and violent tendencies.

But when the FAYZ walls came up, he hadn't gone power mad like some other unstable kids. He had just adapted, gone with the flow. Unlike the other inhabitants of the FAYZ, he had known what it was like to lose one's parents.

If anything, the FAYZ had helped him recover. Him and Tom had been thrown together by Fate, ending up sharing a house, and becoming somewhat friends. Brian was beginning to make progress, and was becoming more sociable. Up until the day where the HC went ballistic and began setting fire to everything. Brian and Tom were sleeping at the time, and had barely escaped the burning inferno that their previous home had become. And now, Brian couldn't sleep, afraid that the same thing would happen again, but that this time, he wouldn't be able to wake up.

He hadn't slept in weeks. He himself didn't think that was possible. Holding a coherent thought in his brain required a lot of effort, and the only thing he was left with was a strong hatred for the HC. And Astrid.

As he had told Tom, he never liked her to begin with. But these days, his dislike had taken a more extreme turn. He had daydreams about killing her. He himself didn't really know why he held such antipathy towards her. To him, she was simply the cause of _everything_. From his father's death to the FAYZ, she was involved somehow. At least, that was what the voice in his head kept whispering.

The voice called Darkness.

It urged him to grab his father's old shotgun and end her once and for all.

And to his sleep-deprived brain, the idea was becoming more and more tempting.

* * *

Angie had slept at the Council's headquarters, but thanks to Howard's negotiations, she didn't do it behind a locked door protected by two kids with guns. She herself thought it was a little ridiculous, the way they wanted to keep her away from any potential danger. To her, the water problem hadn't been that bad, and she didn't think any of the citizens of Perdido Beach were going on a water-snatching rampage just yet. Just yet.

She was woken up by Howard, who was accompanied by his bulky friend Orc.

Well, she was actually woken up by Howard's _voice_.

« What. The heeell. Is going on here? »

Angie groggily raised her head from the couch pillows, her hair sticking out in all directions.

« Whaaa- », she began, before her words were replaced with a loud yawn.

« I thought you were going to come over yesterday evening to fill up the water bottles at our place. That was our deal, remember? Where were you? »

« Here. », mumbled Angie, rubbing her eyes.

« You're not supposed to sleep here. Don't you have a home and some roomies? Didn't we negotiate this with the others long enough yesterday? »

« Your negotiating helped. They didn't put guards or anything. »

Howard gave a loud, exaggerated sigh, turning to Orc.

« And what am I supposed to do with that? »

He leaned in closer to Angie, glaring at her as if she was be guilty of some horrible crime.

« They told me to stay, and I... », protested Angie, attempting to defend herself.

« And you listened to them. _Whoooa_. »

« They're the Council, I can't... »

« Oh, just shut up already. We've been over this! Remember? Them needing water, you squirting water out of your hands, you owning them? »

Angie lowered her eyes, somewhat ashamed. It was too early in the morning to be feeling like a wimp.

« Come on, we're leaving. »

« Maybe we should tell them... »

« We're _leaving_. C'mon, Orc. »

Angie, a little dazed, was escorted outside, her clothes rumpled, her face still drawn. If they met anyone who looked like he or she was about to object, Orc stared them down and flexed his muscles slightly, and they got through without any problems.

Outside, six children were waiting, sitting on the steps, and they stood as soon as they saw the trio.

« Is she the Water Girl? »

« Hey, can you fill my pool? The Council doesn't want to, they say a pool ain't useful, but I say it's plenty useful, and I'll clean it sometimes, I swear... »

« Can you make beer appear? »

« I'll pay three Bertos if she fills up my bathtub! »

The children gathered closer, forming a noisy, demanding crowd. Angie instinctively inched closer to Orc, looking for protection.

« Howard, let's go, please. », she whispered.

The Council had been right. Children were already clamoring for water. There were only six of them so far, but as water supplies would begin to dwindle, their numbers would increase...

Angie bit her lip and wished she'd never developed such a problematic power.

« Wait, wait. Three Bertos is quite a lot, let's see about that kid. », said Howard.

« You're supposed to be my agent! », argued Angie.

« Exactly, I'm looking out for you. Good deals like that don't come often. You do the job, we split the money. »

« Hey! Why should I give you anything? I already said I was going to give you some water, so... »

Howard raised an eyebrow and gave a meaningful glance towards Orc.

« Do you really want to be playing that game, Angie? C'mon. »

He faced the kid, a ruthless smile on his lips.

« If you throw in some alcohol with your three Bertos, she'll fill your bathtub. »

« I don't have alcohol. My brother drank it all two days ago. I got cigarettes though. »

« Meh. M'kay. But next time you want your bathtub filled, get your hands on some beer. »

« Howard, I don't smoke. », spoke up Angie.

« But I do. », declared Howard, « I think it gives me a distinguished look. And you want your agent to be distinguished, right? »

Angie was starting to feel as if the situation was getting uncontrollable. Clearly, hiring Howard as her agent was a decision she was already growing to regret. What had she been thinking?

The only thing she wanted right now...

« Howard, I want to go home. I have to talk to my roomies. »

« Girly, you can do whatever you feel like doing. You'll just do it after we're done filling this guy's bathtub. », said Howard, directing towards her a mocking sneer.

* * *

Shawn, Kate, Tom and Lance were eating in the kitchen, which was already beginning to get dirty again, mournfully chewing on their fish.

« Angie didn't get back last night. », said Kate.

Her comment was met with grunts from the boys. They all felt a storm was coming, and none of them wanted to get involved.

« You know what the gossip was in the mall early this morning? »

« What? », bravely, or foolishly, asked Tom.

« She's hanging out with Howard and Orc now. Too good for us, she is. She's probably not gonna acknowledge us now that she's a mutant. She'd rather spend her time with those two morons. »

« Hey, leave her be, she does what she wants. Maybe the Council doesn't want her back here anyway. We're kinda working on that. », said Shawn, giving a hopeful look to Lance, who only concentrated more intently on his food.

« Maybe she's dating one of them or something. », wondered Kate.

« Eww, Kate! », yelped Tom.

« Stop saying stuff like that. It's only gossip. Even if it's true, like, she's only been with them for what? A day or something. » , said Shawn.

« Maybe she's gonna have lots of little mutant kiddos with that Orc freak? Uh? », said Kate, and this time, her tone was challenging.

« Stop it! That's just gross! », whined Tom.

« Yeah, sorry about your G.F.. Guess she dumped you, in a way. Don't worry about it, you don't have powers, so you didn't stand a chance in the first place. », said Kate.

« Kate! Come on! », complained Shawn.

« Okay, I'll shut up. Whatever. You'll soon seen that's true anyway. », said Kate.

Lance raised his eyes from his fish and flared his nostrils, pausing. They quieted down.

« I've thought about it a lot. There's no use for the HC anymore if the Council has more normies sticking up for our interests. As long as we get a few of our people in the Council house, I'll agree to disband it. It's worthless anyway, and I'm through with violence. Let's have some peace, once and for all.», he announced.

This was so random and unexpected that they all sat still, not daring to say a word, afraid to break the spell.

Kate was the first to speak up.

« Who the fuck are you and what have you done with Lance? »

* * *

It was the afternoon, and Astrid was going to see the Council. She had been warned about Angie's departure from the Council building, and she was scandalized. How had they let such a precious asset go? She was crucial to their survival, how could they not understand that? And they had let her leave with, of all people, Howard and Orc.

Sometimes, she really wished she was back in the Council to shake things up a little.

Actually, she was making her way over there, hoping to give those idiots a piece of her mind. She walked in purposeful strides, her blond head blowing behind her, her steps assured and confident.

Before the building was standing a strange kid, holding something long and metallic in his hands. He looked to be very young, not more than ten, and there was something wrong about the way his green eyes pierced her.

« Astrid. », he spoke, with a shaking voice.

She reacted to the mention of her name and stood dumbstruck, realization and panic making her heart skip a beat, freezing her.

Brian lifted the metallic object.

He aimed for Astrid's head.

He pressed the trigger of his shotgun.


	5. Meetings and Murder

Before we start with chapter 5, I'd like to thank my lovely reviewers: dacakeisalie, DownWithPiggy, Hungery in the Darkness, humansRobsolete, Little Werewolf-san, outwitted, Second daughter of Eve, slave4cheetos, Sue, Sunshine In The Rain, yaliubliucheburashku and WOKgeotobi. Thank you so much for all your comments and support, you're awesome ^_^

He he... I do love the way three different reviewers told me to end Brian in some painful way...

* * *

Brian held his shotgun with trembling hands, a mad, determined look on his youthful face. His green eyes were wide open, as if he was afraid blinking would cause him to shoot. He was panting, half-whining and half-chuckling, but even in his deranged state (or perhaps because of his deranged state), the barrel of the gun was steadily pointing towards Astrid's face.

Astrid held her breath, panicked, then released all of it in a long, terrified shriek.

Angie, Howard, and Orc heard the scream as they walked in the main direction of the Council building, and stopped right on their tracks. Angie, panicked, unconsciously left a wet trail behind them as they made their way towards the sound.

Lance, Shawn, Kate, Tom, and a few dedicated ex-members of the HC saw the glint of the sun on the metallic weapon as they entered the area surrounding the Council building. Lance gestured for them to stay back, and Tom gasped when he recognized who the boy holding the shotgun was.

Sam, deep in talk with Edilio, wasn't paying attention to his surroundings when he stepped out of the Council building. It was only when he heard the shot and smelled the acrid odor of gunpowder that he raised his head.

All of them were present when Astrid's body crumpled to the ground, with blood, blood, so much blood pouring out of her.

* * *

_Before:_

Howard was enjoying himself. There was something distinctly pleasurable about the weight of Bertos in his hand, and the lighter weight of a cigarette packet in his pocket.

« One for you, two for the two of us. », he said, handing down the coins.

Angie was frowning, but Howard knew she was too much of a wimp to do anything about it. Oh well, girlie was going to learn a few things about picking agents. Rule One: Pick someone who isn't Howard.

Howard shared a look with Orc, and saw right away that the only thing in his companion's mind was how much booze he'd be able to acquire with his Berto. Howard winked and gave him a knowing smile, but inside, he worried. Just like water, perhaps at an even more alarming rate, alcohol was becoming something rare.

What was it one of the kids had said? Could Angie make beer appear? Hey, why not, beer was just water with... beer-stuff in it. Herbs and stuff. Shouldn't be that hard. Howard made a mental note to direct Angie's training in the future, making sure she developed her ability in order to produce something else than good ol' H2O.

« Okay, I've filled this guy's bathtub. Can I go home now? », asked Angie.

Howard raised an eyebrow. That was a whine if there ever was one.

« Hey hey hey... First we gotta go to our place. You promised you'd fill our bottles, remember? »

Angie stopped walking and turned around, huffing angrily.

« You. SAID. I could go home. »

« And you will. Did I say when exactly after filling out this guy's bathtub? Come on. Come to our place. »

Angie's expression twisted into a sulk. She sighed loudly and glared at him.

« Relax, I'm not asking you out or anything. If it makes you feel better, Orc is going to come with, and he'll be your chaperon. That way, you can be sure I don't do anything weird to you. », said Howard with a smirk.

Angie looked more offended than amused. _Whoa,_ thought Howard, _that girl has no sense of humor._

« Just fill the beer cans, then go home. », spoke up Orc in his deep, grumbling voice.

If Angie could have objected to the short, skinny Howard, there was no non-suicidal way to say 'no' to Orc. She huffed but stopped arguing, and followed after them.

« We live pretty close to the Council building, so make sure they don't see you. Don't want to get into trouble for sneaking you out. », said Howard as they were walking down San Pablo Avenue.

They continued, Howard in his easy confident step, Orc trailing his massive feet, and Angie nervously shuffling, when they all stopped at once. Angie, late to react, ran into Orc.

« oof-! What! »

Her complaint was silenced by a piercing scream.

« Aaaand... Chaos and mayhem. Just another day in Perdido Beach. C'mon Orc, maybe there's something in it for us. », whispered Howard.

They walked towards the direction of the scream, which was the Council building. Howard vaguely noticed Angie was leaking water as she walked, her panic rendering her oblivious to the drenched state of her jeans.

Five seconds later, they arrived in front of the building, and suddenly, there was something much more important going on than Angie's water-control issues.

Howard, mouth slightly open, stood frozen as he caught sight of a boy holding a shotgun to Astrid's face.

* * *

_Before: _

Lance was walking, looking straight ahead, trying to ignore the protests of the other HC members.

A few minutes ago, he had revealed to them his plan to end the HC once and for all. They hadn't liked that much.

At least six of them were following him, hurling complaints and insults at him.

'Coward' was the most recurrent one.

Lance didn't think himself a coward. Shawn had been right, back at their place. The Council was never going to let Angie come back unless the HC was over. And with water lacking, letting go of an asset like Angie was just plain idiotic. He had to think of himself... well, himself and his roomies, first. Ensure that they had a good water supply. Kate would probably think he was being really clever.

Now, just because he ended the HC didn't mean that once Angie was back with them, some other, maybe more moderate humans-right group would spring to life...

Yeah, human rights. That had the right ring to it.

But for now, Lance had to convince the Council that he was 'clean', and the HC wouldn't be bothering anyone soon.

He felt more confident with Shawn at his side. His friend had a reassuring presence.

The HC members were necessary, but Lance could have done without their whining. He wanted to tell them the situation was only temporary, but he didn't trust one of them not to spill the beans.

And lastly, Kate and Tom were also coming along. Mostly because they wanted to see Angie. But also because they were curious as to how the Council would take the HC's collapse.

They were all walking towards the Council building, unaware that their timing was particularly awful. Lance was leading, Shawn at his left, Kate, Tom, and the HC members trailing behind.

There was a certain obvious tension.

They all walked to the front of the building, just in time to be present when Astrid started to scream.

* * *

_Before:_

Sam and Edilio were deep in discussion. Both were worried about Astrid and Little Pete. Astrid's brother hadn't been present at the party, two days ago. According to Astrid, he was sickly.

Of all the inhabitants of Perdido Beach, the two of them were the most aware of how dangerous Little Pete could be. Both Sam and Edilio had seen the tape recording, back at the plant. Both knew just how much power Little Pete could yield. And both were afraid of the consequences of his sickness.

So engrossed were they by their worries that when Sam heard Astrid's scream, he was only filled with a brief sense of relief, part of his brain hoping she had come to tell them her brother was cured.

That part of his brain clearly wasn't thinking right.

Edilio was the first to raise his head, and his curse, shouted in Spanish, made Sam raise his.

The only thing Sam could see was Astrid, and a random boy he couldn't remember ever meeting, holding a shotgun.

Time seemed to slow to an unbearable stop as the shotgun fired, and the bullet whizzed through the air... Sam could suddenly see every detail of the scene, from the glint of the weapon to Astrid's glossy, opened mouth.

And then, things became fast again, too fast, as if the noise of the shot had woken up Time. Sam heard his girlfriend scream before she was hit. He saw her shoulder jump back from the impact, he saw the blood squirt out.

He saw her collapse, and before he knew it, he was screaming, and his hands were filling with a deadly green light.

* * *

_Now:_

No one had moved. The surreality of the situation had made them stand still, not daring to scream, to help.

But when the shot rang, when Astrid collapsed, Kate was the first one to yell, and to run to Astrid's wounded body. She had done so unthinkingly. It was what anyone in every movie she had watched had done, it somehow seemed like the right thing to do. She knelt by Astrid and took her hand, as if that would have changed anything. Lodged deep in Astrid's right shoulder was a bullet, and her wound was bubbling with blood.

"He shot her!", she accused, pointing a finger at Brian, stating the obvious but somehow seeming to say something profound.

Sam was livid. He was making his way to Astrid, blood pounding in his ears, sounds barely audible.

Edilio had ran to Brian, and had torn the weapon from the boy's shaking hands. Edilio threw the shotgun to the ground and wrestled with Brian's arms, trying to pin the boy down. On Brian's face was a strange look, a scared look.

Edilio had thrown Brian to the ground, and the boy was on his stomach, lifting his head to look at Astrid.

"What did _I_ do? Why are you attacking me? You should be thanking me!", screamed Brian.

The insanity apparent through the boy's words froze all of them. Edilio even let go of him and stepped back, as if Brian was contagious. Sam turned around, raised his glowing hand. This was too much, too much to bear for him. The boy had shot Astrid, and now he was speaking as if he was proud of his action, as if he been right, justified...

A green light flashed, and everyone protected their eyes against its glow. When they opened their eyes once again, Sam was standing in the same spot, hands outstretched, but Brian had disappeared. Tom fainted when he understand Brian had been disintegrated, and was barely caught by one of the ex-HC's members.

"What's happened? What's happened?", loudly demanded Lance, all this blood, all this unforeseen, horrible violence shocking him. A minute ago, he had been preparing his speech to the Council, and now...

Sam looked up, and his eyes met Lance's for a brief second. That look would haunt Lance for the rest of his life.

"I should have known! It's the HC! The HC's behind it!", roared Sam.

"No, no...", whimpered Shawn, trying his best to explain, but the words were chocking him...

"Wait! Stop it! She's alive! Astrid's alive! Get help, quick! She's breathing!", hollered Kate, panicked but extremely relieved, still holding Astrid's warm hand.

Sam ran to Astrid, and through the blood, saw Astrid's eyes were open, feebly blinking.

He growled and pushed Kate away.

"Get away from her, you HC whore!"

Lance, suddenly purposeful, made his way to Sam.

"Don't you dare talk to her like that! She was helping Astrid!", he yelled, as if Kate's honor was somehow important, somehow more important than the charred remains of Brain on the ground, more important than Astrid's blood forming a puddle.

Sam, enraged, raised his hand once again, basking Lance's face in a sickly glow. And he would have destroyed him, had not Edilio yelled for him to bring Astrid to the infirmary, urgently.

"I'll kill you later, you piece of shit. I'll destroy all of you.", said Sam to Lance, before spitting at his feet.

Lance's heart skipped a beat when Sam pushed him away, the leftover power in his hand consuming Lance's shirt and burning Lance's chest. He howled in pain as Sam took Astrid away, lifting her carefully, trying not to burn her with his now-uncontrollable power.

Both Shawn and Orc moved at the same time, one towards his friend, the other towards Sam.

Shawn held Lance upright, propping the screaming Lance by his shoulder.

Orc grabbed Astrid as if she had been a doll and carried her himself.

Edilio, Sam, and Orc, who was being followed by a nervous Howard, departed at top speed to the infirmary, knowing that Dahra wouldn't be able to do anything really, but hoping for Lana, hoping for the Healer to be back...

Kate was weeping, she was in hysterics, grabbing Lance's shirt, covering his face with wet pecks, holding on to his neck.

"I'm sorry... You poor thing... I'm sorry... It's not my fault... Sam's gone psycho... I'm sorry..."

"We... need... to go back home... Sam'll come... back... He'll... kill us.", moaned Lance.

The HC members came up to Lance, and helped Shawn to hold him up. All of them were scared, confused, and none objected to Lance's order. They all began to head towards the house which had previously been a home to Lance, Shawn, Kate, Angie and Tom. Tom, who was still passed out, who had to be carried by a scrawny boy and a freckled girl.

Angie was unable to move, shocked beyond words. How had this happened? How could it have happened?

Shawn caught sight of her, standing alone, tears running down her dirty cheeks.

"Angie? What the hell are you doing there? Oh, who cares, hurry up, come on, come on..."

She unconsciously obeyed him, and started to follow them. Her footsteps caused something to crunch beneath her feet. She looked down. It was the remains of Brian. He had been burned so suddenly, with such an incredible degree of heat, that he had been transformed into ashes.

Ashes, ashes, all that was left of a boy.

Without really thinking about it, Angie clapped her hands, and watched as water poured down, washing the ashes away.

There was also the blood, Astrid's blood staining the neatly cemented street. The flow of water increased, and now Angie was almost losing her footing, pushed back by the power of the flow. It was such a volume of water as she had never seen, it would have been like holding a fire fighter's hose, if she knew what that felt like.

The ground was washed, washed away, and for a brief moment, it was like the ashes and blood were never here in the first place.

Angie took a deep breath, and the water stopped flowing.

Trembling, she turned back, running down the wet street, following her friends and the Human Crew's members.


End file.
